Tony stewart has pumped £35 million into rufc.

[hotun]

Apologies it's Joan….

Yep thats it born and lived next street to me.

[jolly_roger]

Good points hotun and generally I agree with that.

However what we are being presented with is only one half of the balance sheet.

To judge fairly we need the full picture, such as:-

1. How much of the money he has pumped in does he expect back, ie is it gift or loan?
2. How much money have other backers put in?
3. What's the total amount owed to interested parties (other than whats shown on RUFC basic accounts)
4. Do we pay rent? if so how much?
5. What's the interest per annum on what the club borrows?


TS has my respect but having the full picture would be nice.

[hotun]

Jolly do not think you will ever get access to that kind of information,and I ask you in all honesty do you really need to.I cannot ever remember a time when we as fans were told much about the finances of the club,and I doubt if any other club tell their fans very much,my pal Pete Waller is quite worked up about the state of the club but I bet he would not welcome anyone nosying about his business,and neither would anyone else,Pete is an exception though as he posts under his real name.

[aussiemiller]

Rotherham United Football Club don't own the New York Stadium.

They are sitting tenants paying rent to Tony Stewarts property company.

We are in no different position now than we were at Millmoor when we were paying rent to the Booths.

Therefore if the Stewart family did decide to sell the club on but retain ownership of the property company we could find ourselves back in a position of a landlord demanding an unsustainable rent.

Can't say I blame Mr Stewart for protecting his investment in this way and in a business way it makes a lot of sense to keep the main assets NYS, Guest & Chrimes site and training ground, separate from the Club as they can't then come into the equation should the club get in financial difficulties.

I'm totally grateful what Tony Stewart has done for the club, I just wish he'd be more realistic in the statements he makes and accept that for us to be successful in the Championship, which we all know is one of the big boys leagues, he needs additional investment and support to make us competitive.

Pretty sure we are not paying rent in the 600k to 800k range that was being forced out of us with KB.

TS has every right to set ii up as he sees fit. If he takes a profit its his investment good luck to him. However, I think TS is honourable and would never rip RUFC off like KB did.

If his goal is to hand the ground over to RUFC when its paid off then he deserves a knighthood and the keys to the city if that happens. He still needs to cover his costs and take some sort of profit. The guy certainly doesn't deserve the flak he gets on here and i really believe he loves the club and wants to see it in a secure and stable state. He has made mistakes and is hopefully learning
from them. He seems to be eager to make the necessary changes. If he thinks PW is the man for the job then that's fine by me. I support TS and whoever he chooses to bring in. It is his business, not mine

[Brin]

Brin think TS has been backed into a corner and is just fighting his way out,some of the stuff posted on here is just guesswork and some is insulting and disgusting behavoir.One bad season is certainly bringing out the worst in some people,even some very loyal fans have turned very negative,surely its not too much to ask to give the Chairman some respect and certainly not accuse him of unsubstantiated twaddle.

Hotun my friend…I think Tony has come out with day dream rash statements that have carried well in the minds of others that are now being thrown back at him for what is a disastrous season for many reasons…


If a man wants to go live on radio and give a press statement to the local rag on all things he has done/achieved with the club then so be it…what he has to be prepared for is the general public voicing concern about these statements it's called democracy and others will see things differently it's the way of the world and how folk think…

The quote about twaddle is just that…he's come out with some pearlers….Promised land (Premier league)…play off spots…mid table at least….all of which were never going to come off as 'substantial' investment hasn't happened on the pitch in order to achieve those statements….

If the man wants to dream then let him but maybe he could do with a PR guru who he could discuss what he is going to say to the press/radio media before spurting out ridiculous comments….just a thought…

TS will be long talked about long after he has gone for what an amazing thing he has done by bringing our club back to the town and for all intended purposes keeping the name of Rotherham United alive…..LONG MAY THIS CONTINUE FOR MANY A YEAR….

[a123]

So basically your biggest gripe a123 is he said we're aiming for mid table in the Championship?

I suppose he could have said, reyt get yersens off for yer season tickets everone, we're going for 4th from the bottom.

I'm not certain but I reckon he would have got some stick had he said that.

How you can mention TS & KB in the same breath and liken the 2 situations is beyond me. Just because we got screwed back then doesn't mean we would with TS.

Nope my biggest gripe is he made that statement along with others and then the delivery totally failed to match the plan.

I'm a realist and understand our standing in the football world and personally would have been happy for him to say we're going to put a team of battlers together with the first aim of staying in the Championship and once that is secured trying to push on towards a mid-table position.

Tony Stewart on his own has not got the financial clout to bankroll a top end Championship team, I accept that and don't expect us to compete there, TS on the other hand said we would.

Without additional finances coming into the club either by being able to develop the Guest and Chrimes site, filling the units at the ground or brining additional investors into the board room the best we can hope for is bottom 6 in the Championship.

My big worry is that despite this week's statements there is no sign of a forward plan, lots of platitudes acknowledging that mistakes have been made, no acknowledgement of how these were going to be corrected and how the club was intending to build going forward.

I'll be there next season like I have for the best part of the last 40 years because Rotherham United is in my blood, I'd suspect that some of the more recent converts will need to see some positive signs regarding the appointment of the new manager and player recruitment before they decide whether they'll return.

The 2 situations with the ownership of the ground are exactly the same whether you like it or not, I did not say in any way that Tony Stewart is Ken Booth reincarnated, the last 8 years have more than demonstrated that.

[hotun]

Understandable reaction from fans who got carried along with the TS dream and now its in disarray,but some of the stuff being bandied about on here is disgraceful.OK TS has made mistakes but when the dream was alive most of us loved the roller coaster ride.After the great day last season at MK DONS,we all expected and wanted more,but now because of anything you want to mention the dream is on hold,but we will be back,patience and loyalty from the fans and honesty from the club is the medicine for recovery.

[frogmiller]

Pete

Brin comments sums it up perfectly for me nobody made him put the money in wow.

That's what it's come down to as it?

He's been called a liar a bull****ter a lightbulb king and the rest.

It's like an old boys club on here where you all sit round patting each other on the back telling each other I've been watching the millers 30 years so I'm right about us and the bloke who saved us is wrong,

Every time he says anything it's the same Ones criticising him.

Nobody can answer my question why weren't you all moaning about him last year or the year before or the year before that??

It won't happen but if he did walk away and we went bust because of the fans moaning the same ones would sit there and say knowt to do with me I'm a loyal supporter of 30 years.

Let's see everyone get behind the team tomorrow.

I won't hold my breath but some will be on after though to moan as usual.

I understand why people stop posting on here.
But then the boys club will say it's nothing to do with me we're the lifeblood of this site.

Depressing on here with some.

UTM

To be fair to supporters.Some are just questioning how this figure came about. A lot of people on here and other forums hold financial positions in their jobs. Some have indicated that they have written business plans before. Some are company owners themselves.

None of these people I talk of were approached by the council in an attempt for them to take over the ownership of club but that doesn't stop them having good basic business sense. Neither does it make them fickle supporters for raising points they see as incorrect (a bit like my spelling).

A lot of the frustration comes from the inactivity of the NYS project which through RMBC has given cause for concern in regards to the inability of RU Estates to raise the funds needed for their part of the flood defences around the stadium.
The lack of investment in the car park pops its head up now and then as men in yellow jackets are seen walking arround with spray cans now and then.

The threat to British Heritage regarding the Guest and Crimes building raised hope of the matter being resolved came with a cheer from fans but the 16 months threat of an invester that Tony Stewart had waiting in the wings walking away seems to have died down. No communication on that matter.

The empty units around the ground which most fans can see as a wasted opertunity to raise income still goes on.

The £3m sponsorship of ADS holdings may be tax deductable and a question needs to be asked if it his own personal money or his limited companies money of which the other shareholders may well be part of that investment.

Most of what I have written are things that have been asked on forums like this for a good few years now. There is nothing new in it apart from Tony Stewarts defence of his spending.

Let's say I have bought a house for £100k I haven't spent £100k. It'll cost me alot more than that in mortgage repayments. In the house I decide to put it up for rent. I charge the renter the same as it costs for my mortgage repayments so in 20 years the house is mine.
I've got a house for free worth £100k and it hasn't cost me a penny.

Every Rotherham United fan is grateful to Tony Stewart for what he's done for the club but no one deserves to be called fickle for asking questions.

[PeteWaller]

Jolly do not think you will ever get access to that kind of information,and I ask you in all honesty do you really need to.I cannot ever remember a time when we as fans were told much about the finances of the club,and I doubt if any other club tell their fans very much,my pal Pete Waller is quite worked up about the state of the club but I bet he would not welcome anyone nosying about his business,and neither would anyone else,Pete is an exception though as he posts under his real name.

Hotun RUFC doesn't deserve you.

In summary, the main gripe is that TS has said daft stuff and raised fans hopes. His statements have contained some untruths or embellishments. Stop that sort of claptrap and every fan can deal happily with supporting the club. We are masters at supporting no matter what. It is in the blood.

Fed up of the TS saga, so for me, I shall try and ignore owt to do with the subject and concentrate on what I see on the pitch. It's been depressing all of this stuff so let's try and lift the dark cloud eh?

By the way Hotun, I have no objection to anyone seeing my accounts. Business acquisition firms do it all the time. They are in the public domain, just like those of RUFC. That's how it is in this country and how it should be. Accounts only give a snapshot of a business on one day of course. Our turnover which consists of fees amounts to just over £1 million and as such we only need to post abbreviated accounts rather than full audited version. But they are there for anyone to see. Accounts don't state the whole story by a long way but by looking at them, a person can get a feel for things. I live my life in a totally open way and as you say, I post under my name. I having nothing to hide and my opinions are honest and sometimes maybe too passionate but that's not a crime. I hopefully don't offend anyone and if I ever have, then I apologise. I don't like keyboard warriors of course but that's different to having an opinion that others simply don't agree with. In the main, I enjoy MM but I haven't liked the TS saga.

Anyway, TS? Who the hell is TS? Never heard of him.

[kempo]

Hotun my friend…I think Tony has come out with day dream rash statements that have carried well in the minds of others that are now being thrown back at him for what is a disastrous season for many reasons…


If a man wants to go live on radio and give a press statement to the local rag on all things he has done/achieved with the club then so be it…what he has to be prepared for is the general public voicing concern about these statements it's called democracy and others will see things differently it's the way of the world and how folk think…

The quote about twaddle is just that…he's come out with some pearlers….Promised land (Premier league)…play off spots…mid table at least….all of which were never going to come off as 'substantial' investment hasn't happened on the pitch in order to achieve those statements….

If the man wants to dream then let him but maybe he could do with a PR guru who he could discuss what he is going to say to the press/radio media before spurting out ridiculous comments….just a thought…

TS will be long talked about long after he has gone for what an amazing thing he has done by bringing our club back to the town and for all intended purposes keeping the name of Rotherham United alive…..LONG MAY THIS CONTINUE FOR MANY A YEAR….

Good post Brin